VARANASI: Municipal Commissioner Himanshu Nagpal ordered a jetty at Assi Ghat and clearance of the Assi to Naya Assi walkway during a riverfront inspection on Thursday, November 12. These site specific directions add to the November 10 Chhath preparation review, as reported earlier on dalimss.news.
The inspection covered Assi, Naya Assi, Ravidas and Samne ghats, the Vishwasundari Bridge area and the earthen and paved portions of Balua Ghat in Ramnagar. Families using these places should check the actual access route and facilities at their chosen ghat. The directions describe work ordered before the festival, rather than a declaration that every site is ready.
Residents can report municipal service problems through 1533, the complaint number displayed on the official Varanasi Nagar Nigam website. Give the ghat name and the nearest identifiable approach, along with the problem, so a complaint about a blocked walkway is distinguishable from one about lighting or animals.
What changed at Assi on November 12
The commissioner asked for a jetty to be installed through Smart City at Assi Ghat. He also called for sufficient changing rooms to be prepared immediately because of the expected Chhath gathering. The reports of the inspection do not specify the jetty's size, opening hour or passenger capacity, and those details should not be assumed from the instruction.
On the walkway between Assi and Naya Assi, iron and wooden kiosks were identified as encroachments. Nagpal directed that the route be cleared completely. This is the newly identified stretch residents should name when reporting an obstruction, rather than describing the whole riverfront as inaccessible.
The clearance direction and the jetty instruction concern different parts of the visit. One deals with the route along the bank and the other with a facility at Assi. A completed walkway would not, by itself, establish that the jetty is open, and an installation at the river would not establish that the connecting path is clear.
Earthen banks, lighting and floating barriers
Officials were directed to level and dress the ground at Assi, Naya Assi and other earthen ghat areas. Where there is slushy ground, the proposed treatment includes dry soil and bags of sand to make the approach usable. The instruction is particularly relevant to visitors choosing a place to stand for worship along an unpaved edge.
The inspection also brought instructions for adequate lighting and immediate completion of floating barricading. Families should follow the barriers and directions present at the site. A repaired approach or a newly levelled patch should not be treated as evidence that the water beyond it has been declared safe.
Continuous cleaning was ordered along the riverfront, including Namo Ghat, Samne Ghat and Ramnagar's Balua Ghat. The named inspection route also included Ravidas Ghat and the vicinity of Vishwasundari Bridge. Cleaning the worship space and keeping the approach usable are separate tasks, both covered by the directions.
The reports give no completion certificate, measured safe water depth or final count of changing rooms. Those gaps matter for residents assessing a particular location. Check what is in place on arrival and raise a specific service problem instead of relying on a general announcement about preparations.
What residents should do
- At Assi, check where the jetty and changing rooms have actually been provided.
- On the Assi to Naya Assi walkway, report kiosks or other remaining obstructions by their location.
- At earthen approaches, use the route prepared for visitors and avoid slushy stretches.
- For failed lighting, rubbish or roaming animals, give the municipal complaint service the ghat and nearest landmark.
Animal catching vehicles are to remain deployed during Chhath after roaming animals were noticed along parts of the riverfront. The order calls for animals to be caught and moved to a safe place. Residents should report the location through the municipal service rather than attempt to move an animal through a gathering themselves.
Other work and what comes next
Naya Assi Ghat is also to receive horticultural work. The municipal plan includes selfie points with cleanliness and Chhath greetings. These additions sit alongside the practical instructions on access, lighting, changing rooms and barriers; they do not replace the need to complete those facilities.
The new inspection was confirmed from two reports dated November 12. The municipal website was checked for its official complaint service and departmental image. A published official completion report for these inspection directions was not available in the pages read.
The earlier coordination and water depth instructions and assignment of zonal officers for repairs provide background to the inspection. The next point for residents to establish is whether the specific work at their chosen ghat has been completed.
